


Loyalty.

by duaa



Series: Citizens Unregistered [4]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: And All Of The Other Reindeer, Blood, Gen, Implied/Referenced Torture, Knives, Post-Apocalypse, Robots, Unsympathetic Morality | Patton Sanders, implications of abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:06:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24715045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/duaa/pseuds/duaa
Summary: "Hey L. How's it hanging?"'How's it hanging?' -connect to the Net connect to the Net connect to the Net connect"Terrible. You meant to ask how I was doing, were you not?"
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders
Series: Citizens Unregistered [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1763830
Comments: 4
Kudos: 26
Collections: Bad Things Happen Bingo





	Loyalty.

"Hey, tin can man, Virgil asked for you." Relief flooded his form, making his hand twitch. Holly let out a huff of air. "Get to it!" He snapped and Logan nodded.

"Thank you." He turned, planning on marching up the stairs when a blur of purple caught his eye. Virgil was emerging from the canteen, and he walked in there, ignoring the eyes trained on his back. Virgil saw him, waving him over. They claimed a table, and Logan sat there, quiet. 

"Hey L. How's it hanging?" 

'How's it hanging?' - _connect to the Net connect to the Net connect to the Net connect_ "Terrible. You meant to ask how I was doing, were you not?"

"Yeah, sorry, I should really stop with slang shit. Terrible?" 

"Yes. Everyone has expressed their contempt for me. I must admit, I'm rather curious -" He stopped, static ringing from his throat. Virgil patiently waited, glaring at anyone looking at Logan. "C-curious about why they all seem to dislike me." 

"They all su - um, they're all just being mean for no reason. Don't worry, though, I can save you from two days of this torture - which, I mean, of course, this will all cease soon, so don't worry, but uh, -"

"Two days? Is Remus operating on me again?" He liked Remus. Remus saved him. Well, Roman and Remus did, with help from Virgil. He felt more inclined to Remus, though. His loyalty complex, however much skewed, still favoured Remus. He also disconnected Logan from the Net completely, making him safe to be around. Since he tampered with Logan's wiring and motherboard, that made him something akin to Logan's creator. His original creator died three years ago. Which was good, if Logan was in his presence, he would do _anything_ he was instructed to. Now he was more likely to do anything Remus asked him to. 

"Um, no. You're coming with me for a raid. Like the one me and Ro were on when we found you."

"Ah. I see."

"Yeah, except we're not going to that Dump, we're going to the old one. It's more safer to be there and there's pharmaceuticals nearby it." Logan nodded, glad they weren't going to - Remus was here. 

"Remus is here." Virgil frowned, looking around. 

"I don't see him. Oh, nevermind, there he is." He raised a hand in greeting, and Remus jogged over to them, tools jangling on his belt. 

"Logan! Hey! Virgil! What's happening, you funky men?" He slid into the seat next to Logan, tapping at the table. 

"Hey, Rem. We were just discussing our next raid." 

"Alright, alright then. Midnight?"

"No, we're doing two days." 

"Hmm. Logan, take care of Virgil, okay? And Roman, too."

"Of course." He shifted his gaze to Virgil who squirmed, he seemed uncomfortable under scrutiny, but it had to be done. He seemed mostly fine, dourphine running through his veins and relaxing him. He seems confused. Remus gets up, messing up Logan's hair. "You're leaving?"

"Aw, don't be so sad." He wasn't sad. Disappointed, maybe. "I'm just getting food from the kitchens." 

"I see." 

Virgil frowned at him again. "So, L, can you feel love?" 

"Not to a great degree. Just a certain extent." 

"Hmm. So, what do you love?"

"Learning things." 

Virgil eyes him. "That's all?"

"Yes. Were you expecting something else?" 

"I dunno. How do you feel about Remus?" 

He considered that. "Since he reworked my motherboard, I recognise him as my creator, almost."

"So, parent?" 

"No. It's more akin to my loyalty. A child would still turn on their parent. I can not and will not." 

"What about your original creator?" 

"Kylar Hall has been dead for two years. You seem worried. Would it appease you to know that you and Roman are also considered in that?" 

Virgil's head shot up, eyes wide. "We're what now?" He hissed. 

"I have something called a loyalty complex, the only emotion that had been pre-installed in me. It's supposed to be evenly split between my creator and my owners. Since the aforementioned are dead and I have suffered damage to my complex, it's now split between you, Remus and Roman. It leans more towards Remus. Then Roman." 

"Oh. Why is it damaged?" 

"I saw my owners die in front of me." Static. Remus came back to their table, sliding a can in Virgil's direction. 

"Aw no, Logan, not the static!" The static stopped and Logan sputtered. "Oh shit, sorry." 

"Tha -" Static, ending abruptly. "Thank you." 

"No, no, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that."

"So, you _have_ to do whatever Remus says?"

"Yes. I can, of course, oppose it since he isn't my original creator, but I won't." A pause. They looked alarmed. Remus opened his mouth, closing it after a few seconds. 

"Um, I feel like there's something that needs to be discouraged here," Virgil tapped his fingers on the table. "Uh, like, free-will and consent and don't do what a scary man says just cause he says it, you know?" 

"I'm not a scary man! Logan, answer truthfully, am I scary man?" 

"Yes. Isn't that something you intended?"

"Hah, your own kind is turning on you!"

* * * 

"Hey, Metal Man!" Holly called out. "Um, you and Arthur are in charge of cleaning the kitchen. He already started, go in there." Holly says, checking off things from his clipboard. Logan nods, entering the kitchen. He can see Arthur furiously sweeping. He grabs a broom himself and gets to work.

"Oh great, the scrap piece of sentient metal is here!" He continued his work. Virgil said it would end soon. "Christ dude, you just had to go ahead and develop emotions, didn't you?" 

It wasn't his fault. Before the words could bubble up his throat, Arthur threw his broom on the ground. "Why the fuck am I doing something a failure is doing?! Listen up, vending machine, I dunno what that jackass Roman is playing at -" His hand moves before he can even think about it, metal disguised under flesh hitting Arthur's cheek, ringing at the impact. 

"Don't you dare call Roman that." 

"Oh, you _bitch_!" The thing about Logan is that he's not a fighter. Logos were meant for information, to be the smart, behaved children you never had. To be the quiet, helping spouses who took care of everything. To be the fair and stern caretakers your parents never were. Sure, he could defend. He could defend his owners. His creators. Children. 

Self-defence was nowhere on that list. Why would you hit a million dollar robot, unless you intended it for that very purpose? He sees the knife emerging from folds of clothing, he sees it moving and moves backwards, hands flying up to protect his head - to no prevail. The jagged edge cuts into his arm and neck, cutting the frail wires in the process. They were easy to cut, because again, why would anyone go through all that trouble unless they wanted to. Unless they wanted to take him apart, piece by piece and watching him break. Just to put him back together, to build him again. Mr. McKisco's sister had taken him for a week. She had ripped him apart, tore off his skin and tangled his wires. He had felt all of it, the lacerating pain running through his body, his throat raw. She left him like that for days, helpless as she did what she wanted. 

He was built for this. 

Arthur leaves. Logan knows that his vocal cords don't work, slashed. His left arm is immobile, hanging limp. He finishes up mopping, not wanting to give Holly a reason to hate him further. 

After he finishes, he walks out of the kitchen head bowed so no one asks him anything. He makes it to the housing area, wandering upto Remus' floor. He bumps into someone.

"Watch where you're going, dickhead!" He doesn't say anything back. He can't. 

He knocks at the door with Remus' name scrawled on it. "Who's there?" He can't. He knocks again. "Who's there?" Remus hollers louder and Logan can do nothing but knock. The door is wrenched open. 

"Logan, when someone asks who's there, you gotta respond with your - what happened to you? Who did this to you?!" He put an arm around Logan, pulling him inside and automatically, Logan leaned forward, wrapping his functional arm tight around Remus' waist, burying his face in his chest. Remus shut the door and pulled him closer, rubbing his back. He wasn't sure why he did this and why Remus was indulging in his erratic behaviour, but it made him feel better. 

"It's okay, you're safe and fine and alright, okay, come here." Logan isn't crying, he can't cry. But he feels... sad. Angry. Helpless. Scared. He feels scared. "C'mon, let's get you fixed up, okay?" He pulls back and Remus fishes out his things. Logan tries to unbutton his shirt, but fails. 

"It's okay, Logan, I'll do that." The shirt is off and a panel is being opened and Logan's vision goes dark, dark, dark.

 _'Your Logos will be powering up soon. Please connect your Logos to the Net. Your Logos -'_

Logan wake up to the ringing voice inside him, shutting off as he finishes powering up. His vocal cords are working and his arm is fixed up. He registers the unknown warmth, surrounding him and realises that Remus is on top of him. Logan can think of very few people who would sleep next to - let alone _on top of_ \- a rogue, malfunctioning robot that developed sentience. Remus tops the list. 

"About time that shitty voice turned off." Remus also tops the list of people would consciously lay on top of a rogue, malfunctioning sentient robot, wide awake. 

"So, Logan, let's talk names." 

"Sure." He manages to croak out. "What would you like to talk about in particular?" 

"I was thinking something like, hmm, the name of the person who did that to you?"

"Arthur. Holly told me to clean the kitchen with him. He started insulting me, then moved on to calling Roman a 'jackass'. I slapped him and he retaliated like this." Remus says nothing. 

Then, "Is Virgil's hammer an effective tool for killing someone?"

"Yes, his hammer weighs about nineteen pounds, just like a sledgehammer. It doesn't look like one and he usually wields it with one hand. You can kill someone with just one hit." 

"Thanks, Lo." 

"Happy to help."

* * * 

Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. When he mentioned this to Virgil, he simply patted his shoulder saying that he knew what Logan meant. 'No, you don't!' He had wanted to scream. He wanted to tell Remus, but he was out. Holly - who had been nicer to him ever since a particular Arthur went on a raid with Remus and disappeared - told him that he'd look out for any trouble. Roman was the only one who actually believed him.

"We should stick close then." Logan had agreed, grateful that someone believed him. They were currently in the cafeteria, taking a break from their menial tasks. 

"Um, Logan, I wanted -" The intercom blared to life, heavy static filling the room. 

"A189 is requested to immediately go to the Meet Gates. A189 is requested to immediately -"

"That's you." Logan realised with a dull pang of fear. 

"Will you come with me?" Logan nodded and they set off, going to the Meet Gates. Every once in a while, an Unregistered shows up unannounced to a base. If they can prove that they know someone from inside the base, they'll be allowed to the Meet Gates, an apt name. The person they claim to know will be put in there and verified. This was to prevent contamination. Roman knew some Unregistered people from his first base, maybe it was one of them? 

They bypassed the guards, walking to the room. "Taking the can with you?" Roman glared at him. "Hey, uh, Logan you know I was joking right, uh..." 

"It's fine." 

Astra let them in, knife in her hands. Once they were inside, they waited for the other person to come in. A short man with light brown hair skipped into the room, wearing a blue polo, khakis and a jacket tied over his shoulders. Logan watched as he came forward, face coming into view - 

"OH MY GOD, NO NO, ASTRA NO LET US OUT NO" Roman screamed, pounding at the door. 

This was a robot. This was someone like Logan. This was a trademark Pathos. 

"Hiya, Roman! Aw, kiddo, why're you so scared?" 

"ASTRA HELP US, NO NO, HE'S GOING TO KILL ME, HE'S GOING TO KILL ME." Logan felt like he floating, an out of body experience. He could see the Pathos slinking forward, towards them. He stepped in front of Roman, Remus' words ringing in his ears, reworking his pathways. 

"It's me, Roman, it's happy pappy Patton! Remember me? We'll watch TV and eat cereal and pancakes and you can lie to me about how much you like spaghetti. You always lied to me, Roman. You always -" He jerked and Logan half expected static to spill from his lips before realising that that happened to only him. "You always lied, my prince, you lied to me!" 

Roman was frozen in fear, back against the door. Logan stepped forward, arms raised. The knife he had been assigned heavy in his pockets.

"And now you have a Logos, huh? Threw me out like a used tissue! Got a new -" Logan charged forward, pulling his blade out, tackling Pathos to the ground. He could hear Roman screaming, the footsteps outside. He slashed and slashed, cutting through the artificial skin, tearing his wires apart. Pathos clawed at his face, but Logan had the upper hand. He _had_ to protect Roman. Pathos _wanted_ to kill him. The difference between 'had to' and 'want' meant that logically, Logan would succeed. They weren't humans. They didn't have unexpected bursts of power and surges of strength. They operated on logic and logic alone and right now, logically, Logan would kill Pathos. 

And he did, overpowering Pathos, hacking and slashing and hacking and tearing everything apart. He could feel the battery acid splattering on him, designed to flow out like real blood. Once he reached his motherboard, he stopped, reaching in and pulling it out as best as he could. He got to work, breaking it into pieces, making sure to do a finished job. 

Someone's hands are on his shoulder, pulling him off of the desecrated pile of metal on the floor. It's Virgil, and he jerks away, aware of the battery acid on him. He realises with a jolt that the room is full of people, and Roman is right behind Virgil, eyes wide open. 

"Good job, kid." Astra speaks up, crouching by the remains of Pathos. 

"Be careful, that's battery acid." He turns to Roman. "Are you okay?" He feels woozy, like he's about to faint. Roman surges forward, wrapping his arms around Logan, crying into his stained shirt.

* * * 

Logan's waiting for Remus. He was supposed to be here ten minutes ago. Logan is worried, tired and - there he is. Remus' eyes widen when he sees Logan, and Logan walks to meet him in the middle. His eyes are immediately drawn to Logan's shirt and he realises that he forgot to change.

"Logan... is that battery acid?" 

"Yes. I - you look distressed. Roman and Virgil are unharmed, don't worry -"

"Are you okay?!"

"Ah, yes. This is not my battery acid. There was a Pathos here. He was owned by Roman's mother a long time ago, and had come seeking revenge, I presume."

"Oh. Oh! You killed it?"

"Of course." Remus pulls into a hug, exhaling. "Did you think it was mine?"

"Yeah, I was scared that you were dying." A pause. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. I feel better knowing that you're here."

"How's Roman?"

"He's fine, a little shaken up. Virgil is with him, he will be fine." 

"Good. I'm proud of you, Lo, and I'm glad that you're okay."

**Author's Note:**

> lmk if you see a typo  
> hope you like it ❤️💕
> 
> just in case you were confused, remus, roman and virgil took logan in after abandoning him - there will a prequel about all that later


End file.
